Furnace for heating billets.



PATENTED APR. 28, 1903.

E. H. CARROLL. FURNACE FOR HEATING BILLETS.

APPLIG'ATION FILED FEB. l3, 1901.

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UNITED. STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ELBERT H. CARROLL, OF WORCESTER,MASSACHUSETTS.

FURNACE FOR HEATING BILLETS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 726,814, dated April 28, 1903. Application filed February 13 1901. Serial No. 47,110. on; model) To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ELBERT H. CARROLL,;

a citizen of the United States, residing at Worcester, in the county of Worcester and naces for Heating Billets, of which the following is a specification, accompanied by drawings forming a part of the same, in which Figure 1 represents the delivery end of a furnace for heating billets in sectional view Fig. 2 is a plan view of a portion of the furnace at its delivery end, the roof having been removed; and Fig. 3 is a verticalsectional View on line 3 3, Fig. 1.

Similar reference-figures referto similar parts in the difierent views.

My invention relates to a furnace for heating billets for r0lling-mills5and it consists in providing novel means for the delivery of the heated billets from the heating-chamber and in certain novel details of construction, as hereinafter described, and set forth in the annexed claims.

ture and character of my present invention. The furnace,which is of a common and wellknown type, comprises a heating chamber through which the billets are pushed from the,

charging to the delivery end and withdrawn through the opening at the delivery end of the furnace.

Referring to the drawings, 1 denotes the heating-chamber of a billet-heating furnace; 2, a longitudinal track along which the billets 3 are successively pushed in the direction of the arrow 4 and the heated billets are with-Q drawn through the opening 5 in one of the side walls of the furnace, through whichthey are removed by an endless chain 6, which is carried upon sprockets 7 and 8, the sprockets 7 and 8 being connected through gearing 9 and 9' with any suitable driving power by which a continuous motion is given to the conveyer-chain 6 in the direction ofthe arrow 10, Fig. 3. Between the sprocket-wheels 7 and 8 the conveyer-chain 6 runs in and is supported upon the bottom of a horizontal trough 11, which rests upon a plate 12, built into the framework of the furnace. The

trough 11 is protected from the intense heat of the furnace by causing currents of water to flow through longitudinal passages 13 in the body of the trough. Beneath the trough 11 is a pit l4, containing, water which is held at uniform water-level by an overflow-pipe 15, and the conveyer-chain 6 forms a loop 16, which is immersed in the water to absorb the heat acquired by the chain in its passage through the heating-chamber of the furnace. The upper surface of the conveyer-chain is preferably slightly below the plane of the longitudinal track 2, so that as the billets are pushed upon the chain they will fall a short distance by gravity, causing each of the billets to be turned over a quarter-turn. Opposite the delivery-opening 5 is a similar opening 17in the opposite side wall of the furnace for the passage of the conveyer-chain and also sufficient for the admission of a billet in order to allow heated billets to be received from an adjacent furnace, and for this purpose a row of conveyor-rolls 18 is provided,

by which a billet 19, heated in an adjacent furnace, can be movedin the direction of the arrow 20 through the opening 17 upon the conveyor-chain 6, by which it is transferred through the heating-chamber 1 and delivered through the opening 5 upon a similar row of conveyor-rolls 21 to a rolling-mill. The openings 5 and 17 are closed by swinging doors 22 and 23, which are hinged upon brackets. 24 and 25, projecting from vertically-sliding doors 26 and 27. The free ends of the swing ing doors 22 and 23 fallby gravity into an oblique position, as shown in Fig. 3, so asto be raised by the advancingend of the billets, and they swing betweenplates 28, which form walls to close the openings at the sides of the doors.

The operation of the furnace is as follows: The billets admitted at the charging end of the furnace are successively pushed by a pushing mechanism (not shown) of any wellknown form of construction until they reach the end of the track 2, when they fallby gravity upon the top of the conveyer-chain 6, each billet turning a quarter over in its descent. The conveyer-chain 6, carried by the sprocket-wheels 7 and 8, conveys the billet by a longitudinal movement through the delivery-opening 5 in the side wall of the furnace upon conveyer-rolls 21, by which it is moved in the direction of the arrow 29 to the rolling-mill, the loop 16 of the chain passing through the water in the pit 14 in order to cool the chain. Between the delivery of the billets, or in case the delivery of the billets is interrupted, heated billets may be taken from an adjacent furnace of a similar construction and having a delivery-opening in alinement with the conveyerchain 6 and conveyed through the heating-chamber 1 by means of the conveyer-rolls l8 and the chain 6, the billets being entered through the opening 17 in the opposite side wall of the furnace, thereby allowing the operation of the rolling-mill to proceed uninterruptedly. The two sets of conveyer-rolls 18 and 21 on opposite sides of the furnace are simultaneously driven at a uniform speed from a common motor, such as a steam-engine, but not shown in the drawings. The movement of the con'veyer rolls and chain in one direction serves to carry the billets from the heating-chamber through the opening 5 upon the conveyer-rolls 21, and from the conveyer-rolls 21 the billets are moved in the direction of the arrow 29 to the rolling-mill. In case the operation of the rolling-mill is interrupted after the billet has been transferred to the conveyer-rolls 21, a reversal of the motion of the conveyer-rolls and the chain 6 will allow the billet to be returned into the heating-chamber by lifting the swinging door 22 by means of a rod 30 attached thereto, allowing the billet to be returned to the heating-chamber for reheating or to be kept hot in condition to be presented to the rolling-mill. \Vhen the billet is so returned to the heatingchamber by the reversal of the motion of the conveyer-rolls and the chain 6, the movement of the billet in the heating-chamber is checked by means of a stop-bar 31, (shown by broken lines in Fig. 3,) which is inserted beneath the door 23, with the inner end of the bar adapted to receive the end of the advancing billet. The bar 31 is held from longitudinal movement by means of a T-shaped head or cross-piece 32, which is held in notches in the framework of the furnace.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a furnace for heating billets, the combination with the heating-chamber, of a longitudinal track leading from the charging to the delivery end of the furnace, of deliveryopenings in the opposite side walls of the furnace, said delivery-openings being in alinement with each other and with the end of said longitudinal track, an endless-chain conveyer passing through said delivery-openings and through said heating-chain her and adapted to support a billet thereon, a supportingtrough for said chain, and means for moving said chain through said heating-chamber,substantially as described.

2. In a furnace for heating billets, the combination with the heating-chamber, of a longitudinal track extending from the charging to the delivery end of the furnace, openings in the side walls of the furnace in alinement with each other and with the end of said 1ongitudinal track, an endless -chain conveyor passing through said openings and through said heating-chamber,said chain being adapted to support a billet thereon and having its supporting-surface placed slightly below the supporting-surface of said longitudinal track, whereby a billet is turned a partial rotation as it is delivered upon said chain from said longitudinal track,substantially as described.

3. In a furnace for heating billets, the combination with the heating-chamber, of a longitudinal track leading from the charging to the delivery end of the chamber, openings in the side walls of the furnace at its delivery end, said openings being in alinement with each other, an endless conveyor-chain passing through said openings and through said heating-chamber, conveyer-rolls on opposite sides of said furnace and in alinement with said chain, means for simultaneously driving said conveyer-rolls and said chain in either direction, whereby a billet may be moved out of said furnace in either direction and returned thereto, substantially as described.

4. In a furnace for heating billets, the combination with the heating-chamber,of an endless conveyer-chain passing transversely 7 through the heating-chamber and through openings in the side walls of the chamber, doors sliding in vertical ways by which the. upper portion of said openings are closed, brackets projecting outwardly from said sliding doors,swinging doors hinged to said brackets for closing the lower portion of said openings, and side walls inclosing said swinging doors, substantially as described.

5. In a furnace for heating billets, the combination with the heating-chamber having openings in its side walls for the delivery of a heated billet, of an endless conveyor-chain passing through said openings and through said heating-chamber and adapted to support a billet thereon, means for moving said chain in either direction, whereby a heated billet maybe moved out of said chamber and returned thereto, and a stop by whichthe movement of the billet may be checked independently of the movement of the conveyor, substantially as described.

Dated this 9th day of February, 1901.

' ELBERT I-I. CARROLL.

Witnesses:

RUFUS B. FOWLER, FLORENCE O. COOK. 

